The Baltimore Ravens and specifically Lamar Jackson took a major reap forward last year. The coaching staff tailored the offense around Jackson and took off from there. The defense was great last year following the acquisition of Marcus Peters and the front office made more astounding moves during free agency as well as the draft. With another year of learning the offense for Jackson and surrounding him with more weapons and a great defense, the Ravens are ready to make another run at the Super Bowl.
Make sure to check out all of our in-depth power rankings here.
- Overall – 85.657 (3rd)
- Offense – 85.495 (4th)
- Defense – 85.425 (2nd)
- Coach and Culture – 91.25, (1st)
- Home Field Advantage – 85, 8th (4% Defense, 2% Overall)
Quarterbacks – 86.5, 7th (36% Offense, 27% Overall)
Jackson won the league MVP after a phenomenal sophomore campaign. He threw for over 3,000 yards and 36 touchdowns as well as rushing for over 1,200 yards and seven touchdowns. The offense was significantly tailored around his skills and it worked out in Baltimore’s favor. Jackson still needs to work on his accuracy outside of his first read but he definitely was a better passer than most expected him to be coming into his second year. With more weapons this year, Jackson has a ton of opportunity to work on his accuracy and become one of the more potent passers in the league instead of an average one with the ability to scramble for over 1,000 yards.
Robert Griffin III is the perfect backup to Jackson as Baltimore wouldn’t have to change much in the offense to accompany Griffin being the starter. Griffin led the Ravens to a week 17 win last year. He completed over 60% of his passes for 225 yards and a touchdown. If Jackson were to go down due to an injury, I would be confident that Griffin could win the Ravens a few games. He also factors in on a special package Baltimore runs with both him and Jackson on the field at the same time.
Trace McSorley is similar to Jackson and Griffin in the fact that he can be used in a variety of different ways. He showed some production in the preseason last year and gives the Ravens a developmental option behind Griffin as a potential backup. Tyler Huntley is another player the Ravens have behind Jackson that they wouldn’t have to alter the offense to support his skillset. Huntley was a great pickup as a free agent and could have a bright future in the league.
Running Backs – 86.5, 9th (4% Offense, 3% Overall)
The stable of running backs was one of the best in the league last year and it got even better during the draft. Mark Ingram averaged five yards per carry last year en route to a 1,018-yard and 10 touchdown season. Ingram was joined by Gus Edwards who had over 700 yards and two touchdowns as well. Justice Hill was a draft pick last year that will likely take a backseat this year but posted 225 yards and two touchdowns.
The Ravens decided to make their running game even stronger by selecting J.K. Dobbins in the second round of the draft. Dobbins combined over 4,400 rushing and 600 receiving yards during his time at Ohio State and is coming off of a junior season where he had over 2,000 rushing yards and 21 rushing touchdowns. He will likely be in the rotation early and could take over for Ingram as the workhorse back in a year or two. The Ravens backfield goes four-deep and all of the players will have a role this year. Dobbins is the future of the backfield and will be an absolute nightmare to team up with Jackson in the run.
Pass Catchers – 78, 25th (17% Offense, 8% Overall)
This was the team’s downfall last year and it might continue to be. Marquise Brown turned out to be an excellent selection and posted a 46/584/7 stat-line in only 14 games. With another year learning the offensive system and more chemistry with Jackson, Brown could light up the stat sheet this year. Willie Snead was the second receiver in the mix last year and had 30 catches for 349 yards and two touchdowns. If Snead were on any other team, he would most likely be veteran depth instead of the second option. Miles Boykin hasn’t lived up to his draft pedigree and only posted 13 catches for 198 yards and three touchdowns his rookie year. De’Anthony Thomas has a roster spot locked up as the primary return man.
The Ravens are hoping two rookies can bring success to their receiving core. They spent a third-round selection on Texas receiver, Devin Duvernay. He was excellent at Texas and has elite speed as well as toughness to make it in the league. I had an early second-round grade on Duvernay. James Proche was the second receiver Baltimore selected and was taken in the sixth round. He is the perfect slot receiver in Baltimore’s scheme and will pair with Brown and Duvernay perfectly.
Mark Andrews burst onto the scene last year as one of the best young tight ends in the league. Andrews posted 64 catches for 852 yards and ten touchdowns. Hayden Hurst was traded to Atlanta, opening up 39 targets on the offense. Nick Boyle is more of a blocker than receiver but had 31 catches for 321 yards and two touchdowns as the third tight end in the offense.
Offensive Line – 82, 11th (24% Offense, 12% Overall)
Baltimore’s offensive line was one of the best in the league last year. They had the most rushing yards in the league and only surrendering 28 sacks. Ronnie Stanley had an excellent season last year and only gave up six pressures in 483 snaps according to PFF. Orlando Brown had a great second season and earned a Pro Bowl nod as a result. The interior lost Marshal Yanda after an illustrious career and he will be replaced by one of three players who are in a battle for the right guard spot. Ben Powers is a solid option as a young player, Tyre Phillips played tackle in college but will make the transition to guard, and D.J. Fluker was added in free agency.
Bradley Bozeman should remain the starter at left guard. Matt Skura is looking to return from injury and will man the middle of the offensive line. Patrick Mekari had some starts at center while Skura was injured and showed he could play well in some spot starts. Phillips and Ben Bredeson were two great selections in the third and fourth rounds and could be the future on the interior for Baltimore.
Run Defense – 87, 3rd (6% Defense, 2% Overall)
The Ravens desperately needed help on their defensive line and added a ton of bodies. Brandon Williams is the main holdover at nose tackle. With the departures of Michael Pierce and Domata Peko on the interior, Daylon Mack has the opportunity to fight for a key rotational spot. Mack has run-stuffing ability but didn’t produce much as a pass rusher. Calais Campbell was acquired for nothing and provides a dominant run-stopper and great pass rusher. Baltimore had virtually no pass rush from their defensive line and the addition of Campbell is a great start to making sure that doesn’t happen again. Derek Wolfe was added in free agency coming off of a seven-sack season in Denver. Campbell, Williams, and Wolfe are the starters on the defensive line.
Justin Madubuike was a third-round selection this year and will factor in as a pass-rush specialist this year. Patrick Ricard plays fullback and defensive end and is a lock for the roster, while Justin Ellis and fifth-round pick Broderick Washington Jr. will battle for the final spot on the defensive line. The Ravens attacked their linebacking core in the first two days of the draft by selecting Patrick Queen in round one (with help from Green Bay and Seattle), as well as Malik Harrison in the third round. The two offer differing skillsets and will immediately line up as the starters in the middle of the defense.
Pass Rush – 82.5, 12th (21% Defense, 10% Overall)
The Ravens pass rush was so-so last year and only recorded 37 sacks. The Ravens completely re-did their front seven with additions on the defensive line, which included 13.5 sacks brought in from Campbell and Wolfe. Matt Judon led the team with 9.5 sacks last year and will once again be a starter off the edge. Pernell McPhee was seen as a potential game-changer in the scheme but only managed three sacks. He was injured for the majority of the year, leading Tyus Bowser to have a breakout season with five sacks. Jaylon Ferguson had 2.5 sacks last year as a rookie and will factor into the rotation off of the edge. Madubuike had 11 sacks his last two years at Texas A&M and will be a factor in helping the interior pass rush.
Linebackers – 78, T-21st (15% Defense, 4% Overall)
Queen was a steal where the Ravens got him in the first round. I had him ranked as my second linebacker and a top-twenty player in the class. He has the ability to play all three-downs as he can roam sideline to sideline as a run stopper and drop back into coverage against running backs and tight ends. Harrison is the run stopper now on defense and is more similar to what the Ravens had in C.J. Mosley than Queen is. The two will line up as the starters immediately and help the defense tremendously.
L.J. Fort is the depth piece with the most potential but has gone from team-to-team recently. In a rotational starting role, Fort compiled 35 tackles, four tackles for loss, and two sacks last year. Chris Board is the only other player of note that will make the roster at the linebacker spot.
Secondary – 89, 1st (26% Defense, 17% Overall)
The addition of Peters completely made the secondary a problem to play against. He had 10 pass deflections, three interceptions, including two for a touchdown. Peters is one of the best cornerbacks in the league and Baltimore seems to be the best place for him. Marlon Humphrey across from Peters had a breakout year last year with 14 pass deflections and three interceptions. Jimmy Smith only played in nine games last year and is poised for another strong season. He was on his way to doing so last year before his injury where he had six pass deflections and an interception. Tavon Young has missed two full seasons due to injury and if he can stay healthy, the Ravens run five deep as Anthony Averett had a good season last year.
Earl Thomas is still one of the best safeties in the league despite his age and is a perfect fit in Baltimore. Despite the rumors of Baltimore being in on Jamal Adams, I don’t see it happening. Opposite of Thomas is Chuck Clark, who had a breakout year last season as he led the team in tackles. Anthony Levine and Deshon Elliot are the depth pieces but could have some competition as Geno Stone comes in from the draft. Stone was regarded as one of the best cover safeties in all of college football in the last few years and has sure tackling ability. He isn’t a freak athlete which may be the reason he slipped to the seventh-round when some had him as a day two prospect.
Coach and Culture – 91.25, 1st (19% Offense, 28% Defense, 15% Overall)
John Harbaugh is one of the best coaches in the league. He knows how to get the most out of his players and is great with them in the locker room and on the field. Harbaugh and Greg Roman knew how to get the most out of Jackson and tailored the offense around his style of play and have surrounded him with more talent. The offense ranks second in coach and culture.
Don Martindale has been the Ravens defensive coordinator since the 2018 season and has done a lot with little talent for the Ravens. He now has the best defense he has had since the Super Bowl run where he was the linebackers coach. The front seven has been retooled during the offseason and the secondary is one, if not the best in the league and all of the members of last year’s secondary return. Martindale won the assistant coach of the year award last year and is surprisingly not a head coach elsewhere. Baltimore is at the top of the podium where they rank first in defensive coach and culture.
The Ravens have a great culture and are here to stay for a long time. Jackson can still improve upon his MVP campaign and become more of an elite passer. The offense has been retooled around him by adding weapons and the defense has added players to an already great side of the ball. With the AFC changing with New England losing Tom Brady and some other teams losing their top players like Houston, Baltimore has all of the opportunity to make the Super Bowl this year from the AFC.
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